Return to the heart of Darkness.Prelude.
by Alex
Summary: FF2/4j based fic. Prelude to my first fic ever. Read and Review-edited on Jan. 6


The gate guards where shocked, an indiscreet figure, at least at this distance walked through the devouring winds of a high-summer Baronion sandstorm. Almost no one made the trip to Baron on foot, why should they? Baron boasted one of the largest sea harbors on the Levantic, not to mention the famous airship docks. If you couldn't get all the way to Baron by boat or air, Mystia still hosted the legendary serpent road, a bit draining yes, but not so much as to encourage a voyage on foot.   
  
To say that the guards where shocked wasn't exactly the right terms for it, the emotion they felt could only be described as a mixture of total shock, and wonder at the might of the person who could walk through the winds of the infamous Baron sandstorm. The drastic amount of monsters alone would topple most travelers, but this one came out unscratched.  
  
With these thoughts running through their minds, they barely had time to notice, much less stop the wanderer from entering the town. The fierceness in his piercing green eyes swallowed the guards, and even though an evil aura clung to this stranger, he was allowed to enter Baron without a second glance from the guards.  
  
***  
  
"Cecil, I just don't see how this is possible," Shaking his head in disgust, "We send out dozens of extermination squads everyday, and still the monsters move on like a titanic wave from the mouth of Leviathan himself."  
  
The short, angelic man was dressed in total purple, a sharp contrast to the room's white and silver tapestries. The man was not unknown in Baron, in the whole world of the Blue Planet; he was Edward, King of Dancan. Though Edward had played only a minor role in the Crystal War, he had been a part of it.  
  
The only other person in the room was as sharp in contrast to Edward, as Edward's clothing where to room. He was tall and strong and at 45 he still retained his regal stature. The figure had not been born to royalty, his deeds and actions had placed him and his belovied in that ironic position. Sometimes he often wondered if he preferred now to before, peace instead of war, it was dull, but it lacked death and destruction that was the price of chaos.   
  
This and a thousand other things where passing through the man's mind at the moment, he tried to concentrate on the matter at hand, but they had been over this so many times, it was becoming an everyday thing, and as of yet these meeting had only resulted in headaches.  
  
"Cecil, it has become so dangerous that the common people cannot even walk through the country side, and the weather... well that's a another matter all to itself." Edward, scowling at the very thaught of the nightmarish weather they had been having recently..   
  
Of course he knew that saying this would accomplish nothing, he had said it so many times that he did not even think about the words before they fell from his lips. Edward had grown weary of these never-ending meetings several months ago, but until things where solved, the meetings had to go on.  
  
"Edward, we must" Before Cecil could even begin to voice his thoughts on the matter a soft tap on the door stopped him. "Come in."  
  
A servant opened the door and bowed first to Edward, and then to Cecil, "Your Majesty, Lord Edge, and Lady Rydia have arrived, should I show them in?" Asked the servant.  
  
"Yes, please." Cecil said. The servant could obovously tell that the two men where in a sour mood and took it as a dismissal, promptly heading to the door, remembering that she had originally came on the queen's behalf she turned and quickly spoke, "Your Majesty, the Queen also wishes me to inform you that she will be here shortly."  
  
Before Cecil could say anything the servant had slipped out. It still didn't feel right being called Majesty; he had been called many things throughout his life, starting with Dark Knight, Captain of the Red Wings, Paladin, the Holy Knight, and finally Hero. He had carried the other titles with ease, but this one hadn't settled yet, even though he had held it for over twenty w years. In a short series of events Cecil had discovered more about himself than he had even wished to know. He discovered his Lunarian heritage, his father, brother, and other family members. Finally he had uncovered a secret power in himself, which basically he redefined his whole being. Unfortunately, in finding all this he also had to confront the evil within him, he could not destroy it, so he had to live with it.   
  
"Hey old man!" The loud words broke Cecil out of his reverie, and brought a smile to his face. The owner of the voice suddenly appeared, followed by the beauty and innocence of the world's greatest Black Mage.   
  
"Edge, Rydia, it's so great to see you again." Cecil stated, apparently alight at seeing his old friends again. "Cecil, it's only been a few months, but it feels like years." The pregnent Rydia said.   
  
This would be Rydia and Edge's second child. They already had one son. It turned out that both of them really cared for each other, and after Edge stopped hounding her so much, Rydia finally admitted her love for the young king.  
  
"Stop that now, we have more important things to discuss, it seems we may have to go out there ourselves and fend of these monsters, think your up to it old man?" Edge said with a wink at Cecil. Sitting down, Cecil could see that behind his humorous exterior, there was a sparkling in his eyes that whould burn bright through the hardest of times.. "Yes Edge, I'm sure I can manage." Cecil, Edge, and Edward all smiled, while Rydia simply sighed...  
  
***   
  
Having already seen one person come through the front gates of baron, recently titled the "Death gate" by locals for the shear number of people who had died trying to reach the gate. One would think that the guards wouldn't have been so shocked at the sight of a second stoic figure walking under the boiling desert sun and onto their "doorstep." Of course they still where, to make matters worse the figure slowly begun to resemble the first one. He had silvery white hair, not to tall, but not to short, his face was gentle, yet justified. He was dressed in casual clothing, knee-high boots. and carried a spear on his back. His muscles where tonned, but not bulging, you could tell that he could handle the spear with ease. Out of all of this it was the eyes that scarred the guards the most, they where green, and seemed to be able to see right through you. Expecting to fell the same evil aura again, the guards tensed, this was their city and they would not fell it a second time, but as the stranger came closer the guards also began to see a light of compassion and an undeniable sense of justice that had been missing in the last strangers eyes.  
  
The guards had to fight the urge to kneel, only one other figure had ever made them feel like this, and he was king. The young man, for his youth was apparent by the amusement that showed on his face, walked straight through without stopping once; he did not fear that he would be stopped, he knew the guards would not challenge him, and it would not matter if they did..  
  
Now the streets of the great city arose around him, the usual hustle and bustle of city life clamored to his ears and eyes. Baron was prosperous, even in these dangerous times, the air ships, and seaports had seen to that. The peasants lived a life more suited for a middle-class citizen, it was said that no one in Baron went hungry, another achievement of great Palidian-King.  
  
As the young man made his way through the city a lane seemed to open in front of him, not of fear as one for the previous stranger had, but of respect. He took it all in, but his eyes remained keyed to the spectacle of Castle Baron, for that was the reason he had made this journey, his future would be decided in Castle Baron.  
  
As the young man arrived at the castle gates the guards did not even question him; they merely bowed and opened the gates.   
  
"Surely this one is Royalty?" Whispered one, the other answered with a quick snap of his head.  
  
As the young man walked through the archway of the castle only one thought filled his mind; "At last I have arrived, now I will see how great this Cecil is, and hopefully my father will be pleased..."  



End file.
